Should I submit a resume with my University of Chicago application?

You should submit a resume to UChicago only if it adds meaningful information that does not already fit well in the application. If your activities list already captures your main commitments, roles, impact, work experience, and major honors, a resume is usually optional rather than necessary. At UChicago, more information is only helpful when it gives clearer context, depth, or timeline, not when it repeats the same entries in a different format.

A resume can help if you have substantial involvement that is hard to compress into the standard activities section, such as long-term research, significant paid work, family responsibilities, independent projects, publications, or multiple leadership roles with real detail behind them. It can also be useful if your extracurricular profile is unusually broad or if the chronology of your commitments matters.

It is probably not worth submitting if it mostly restates your Common App activities list, honors, and coursework. In that case, it can read as redundant and does not strengthen the file just by existing. UChicago admissions readers are used to concise applications, so a short, well-chosen additional document is better than an expanded version of what they already know.

If you do include one, keep it to one page, maybe two only if you truly need the space, and make sure it highlights concrete scope and impact. For example, years involved, leadership progression, publication or competition results, or responsibilities at a job are more useful than generic descriptions.